Kiss of Death

Part 9

I toss and turn throughout the night, thinking about the events of earlier that day. If Nolan hadn't come and gotten me in the maze, what would have happened? I shudder at the thought.

Eventually I fall asleep.

I'm woken up by loud sounds of fighting. My door bursts open and Nolan comes running in, followed by Tyson and two men i don't recognize.

I climb out of my bed and run towards Nolan.

"What's going on?" Before Nolan can answer four men in all black burst into the room. They all split up and begin to fight with Nolan, Tyson, and the two guards.  While they are fighting, a fifth man comes in. He walks towards me with a hood covering his face. He removes his hood to reveal a sick smile on his face.

I gasp. It's the innkeeper.

He grabs me by the arm and begins to drag me away. Nolan sees this and quickly finishes off the man he is fighting. He rushes towards me and the innkeeper. As he nears us a sickening squelch sounds. He stops and his face drops. He looks down to where the innkeeper stabbed him. He falls to the ground and I go down with him. I hold his head in my hands.

"Nolan please, please you have to stay awake." I begin to sob. Nolan grabs my hands and looks at me with sad eyes.

I love his eyes. I love the way his hands feel as he holds mine. I love the warmth our bodies share. I love him.

"Runella." Nolan sighs and closes his eyes.

My heart shatters. I cant bear to lose him. The pain is growing. It feels like I can't breathe.

I wake up gasping for air. I look around frantically for Nolan. I feel so alone in the big bed. I shakily climb out and walk out of my room. I walk down the hall until I come to the doors to Nolan's room. I bite the inside of my lip and reach for the door handle.

Before I touch it the door flies open and a disheveled Nolan is standing in front of me. He isn't wearing a shirt and his ginger curls are all over the place. He has a look of pure despair on his face. When he sees me, a look of relief washes over his face. He grabs me and hugs me close, burying his head into my neck. I hug him back resting my chin on his shoulder.

"I thought I lost you." he mumbles.

"I'm right here. I'm not leaving." I whisper reassuringly to him. He pulls away and stares into my eyes. I could get lost in his eyes. They're like pools of dark chocolate with golden flecks flicked throughout. Something flashes in his eyes, just for a second.

Suddenly, he leans in to kiss me. I recoil in shock. He stands there, embarrassed.

"Sorry, I should've asked first." He mumbles rubbing the back of his neck. His face is cherry red.

"It's not that." I sigh "It's just.. I cant right now I'm so sorry." I bury my face in my hands and walk out to the garden. I head to the maze and walk in. The walls that once terrified me now are comforting.

I walk into the middle and look around. A fountain with a statue of a dragon sits at the top. A bench sits by it and there are flowers all around. I sit at the bench and think about what just happened.

I didn't not like the kiss. It's just. I don't know.  The kiss was electrifying. I've kissed other guys before but this one was different. I wanted more. My lips felt cold where Nolan's no longer were. My legs aches to run back to him. My arms yearn to be in his. I feel alone without him around me.

I get up and hurry towards the maze. As I near the entrance, something hits me and I fall to the ground. I get up and see a man in black lumbering towards me. I quickly get to my feet and ready myself for a fight.

"What do you want?" I question the man. He lunged towards me and I dance to the left. I grab his arm and use his momentum to fling him to the ground. I step on his head while holding his arm. He wiggles around but I hold him tight.

"I'll ask you one more time," I hiss at him, "Who. Are. You." He doesn't respond and he just chuckles.

The next thing I know, he has me in a chokehold. He's so tall that my feet are off of the ground. I claw at his arm as he whispers in my ear.

"My identity is not your concern Runella." How does he know my name? "I have a proposition. You help me kill the king, and I'll, get your brother out of the dungeon." My heart drops. He knows about Keegan?

"Let me go right now." I reach back and scratch him somewhere. He cries out and lets me go. He reaches under his hood and runs away. I smirk and rush back to my room. I get into bed and think about what happened.

I love Keegan and I need to get him out of jail. But, can I really kill Nolan? My heart aches at the thought of killing him. I couldn't do it. But Keegan. Why are decisions so hard to make? I slowly drift off into a fitful sleep.

I'm woken in the morning by a gentle knocking at my door. A young girl comes in.

"Hello Ms.Smith, my name is Elsie. I'll be your lady-in-waiting. You have training today. Tyson is waiting at the arena for you." She's young. She seems to be around 12. She reminds me of my little sister Isabelle. She has platinum blonde hair cut right below her shoulders. She has dark blue eyes that observe everything around her. I like her.

I get dressed in an outfit Elsie identified as my training outfit. It includes a tight black shirt with matching pants. They accentuate my form. They're breathable and flexible. I can really move around in these. Elsie shows me a pair of boots. They aren't as comfortable as mine but they'll do.

I walk down to the arena to see Tyson with a pencil and notepad. He sees me and walks towards me. We meet in the middle and two servants bring us stools. Tyson sits on one.

"Let's talk Ms.Smith."